


What Use is Wizardry?

by NoOneKnowsIWriteThis



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dragons, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - The Last Unicorn Fusion, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-04
Updated: 2017-02-04
Packaged: 2018-09-21 21:05:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,657
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9566300
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NoOneKnowsIWriteThis/pseuds/NoOneKnowsIWriteThis
Summary: Heavily based on The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle. Garak is a dragon who winds up trapped in a human form due to the intervention of Julian the magician.--“Julian, I can feel this body dying around me,” he said softly, for once cutting to the heart of the matter. “I'm trapped in a decaying prison.”“I...” Julian paused as his stomach fell. What had once felt like a miraculous triumph now felt like a tragic mistake.





	

“Stay here.” That had been the last thing Garak had said to him before flying out to fight the flock of harpies that had invaded the dragon's territory. And now Julian could only watch helplessly as his companion's armored hide proved useless against this assault.

 

The flock of harpies struck Garak again and again, piercing his obsidian black scales. Julian despaired. His magic was useless here, even if he could bend it to his will. If only he could control his magic, perhaps if he transformed Garak, even for a little while, into a creature that was too humble for the harpies to bother with...but even though he had great power he could only point it in the general direction of what he wanted, not actually control it. Perhaps if he...

 

Julian took a deep breath and focused the power within him. He focused on Garak, on saving him. He began muttering to himself, “Magic, do what you will,” over and over again as he worked.

 

A bright light sprang from his hands and leaped to the dragon above him. The light pulled the creature down and began to shrink and shift him, remaking him in a new shape. Finally the light faded and Julian opened his eyes. The harpies shrieked above him, announcing their displeasure at the disappearance of their quarry as they left, but they didn't matter. All that mattered was the still form where he'd felt the magic place Garak. He sprinted across the clearing, eager to get to the dragon's side, only to find that his dragon had been transformed.

 

Before him was a naked man. Humanoid, but not completely human. For starters the man was entirely gray. Julian quickly pulled off his black cloak and laid it over the unconscious man out of an odd sense of modesty. He pulled the man's head into his lap and noticed the ridges and shapes that weakly echoed ones that had been on his dragon's face, most notably the spoon shape in the center of his forehead.

 

“Garak,” he said plaintively, brushing the man's raven black hair off of his face. He hadn't meant for this. He'd meant to protect the dragon, prevent his near certain death at the claws of those harpies, but he'd never meant to cause him pain.

 

After a moment that felt like an age, the gray man began to stir. Julian noticed this immediately.

 

“Garak!” he exclaimed. “I was so worried. Those harpies nearly killed you and then the magic...well, I don't really know what it did but it...” Julian found his voice fading as a mournful look grew on Garak's face.

 

“What,” he said, his voice cracking. He coughed and then tried again. “What have you done to me?”

 

Julian almost answered, but there was something about the sorrow in Garak's voice that stopped him.

 

“What have you done to me?” Garak repeated mournfully.

 

“I-I...the harpies...I used magic...real...real magic.” His victory at managing to beg the magic into action suddenly fell away and felt worthless. “I transformed you...”

 

“Into a human...humanoid...” Garak muttered, his voice full of pain.

 

“The magic chose the shape,” Julian hedged. He had suggested ideas to the magic, but it had made the final decision after all.

 

Garak slowly opened his eyes, which were no less strikingly blue than they had been in his proper form.

 

“Julian, I can feel this body dying around me,” he said softly, for once cutting to the heart of the matter. “I'm trapped in a decaying prison.”

 

“I...” Julian paused as his stomach fell. What had once felt like a miraculous triumph now felt like a tragic mistake.

 

“I can reverse it!” he rushed to reassure Garak. “N...not right now, but when I've recovered I can try to summon the magic again. A-and I'll keep trying until I fix this!”

 

“Julian,” the former dragon groaned out. He grabbed one of Julian's hands and squeezed it tight. “Take me home,” he begged after what seemed like an age. The fierce and witty creature collapsed into Julian's lap in such a way that it managed to feel like a surrender.

 

Julian immediately set to lifting the other man, tapping the magical energy that flowed through his very being to enhance his strength, and careful to keep the cloak covering the otherwise naked body as he moved. After quite a bit of work, he managed to carry Garak back to the cave that the dragon had claimed as his lair and lay him down on the large bed he'd managed to to acquire for Julian's use.

 

“I'm so sorry, Garak,” the magician murmured as he smoothed back the other man's hair. He noted that Garak's skin was much cooler than his own, similar to how his scales had felt under Julian's human hands.

 

–

 

A few days later and Garak had grown feverish from infection, despite Julian's best efforts to care for his wounds. Worse, sometimes the former dragon had gone delirious, not recognized Julian, and tried to attack him. The magician sighed, running a hand through his already disheveled hair. He'd tentatively tried to reach out to the magic, to see if he was recovered enough to try to restore Garak to his proper form, but he was still too weak to do anything like the raw manipulation he'd managed to get them into this situation. He settled into his usual place by the dragon's side and started lazily stroking the other's hair.

 

Lightning quick Garak's grabbed Julian's wrist, his fingers squeezing sharply, and then he twisted, causing the magician to cry out in pain.

 

“G-Garak!” he pleaded, his eyes searching Garak's for any sign of recognition. He found not only that, but also resentment.

 

“Has anyone ever told you, mage, that you're an infuriating pest?” the dragon growled at him. Julian gaped silently, all his clever retorts catching in his throat. “The cave is too cold, the world is too bright, and your sanctimonious voice as you mumble meaningless platitudes is making me ill. I should never have brought you here. I should have left you for the kraken. And now I'm trapped in this dying body with my captor as my nursemaid.” He punctuated his statement with a venomous glare.

 

“I-I'll fix this, Garak. Just give me a few more days and I'll be able to call on the magic again,” he reassured quickly.

 

“See that you do,” Garak hissed as he released Julian's arm with a shove.

 

–

 

Garak's fever broke shortly after that. As Julian sat by the sleeping dragon's side he slipped his eyes closed and reached out to the power within him. He let it travel through him, appraising his connection as he pushed its focus around his being. Finally, he was satisfied. He'd recovered enough that he could restore Garak. In fact the magic seemed to be actually listening to him for once. He could feel how it longed to work on the dragon, but it was holding itself back, waiting for his command. He sighed as he began to center himself, only to have his focus immediately broken by Garak's hand on his.

 

“Julian,” he murmured gently. “You're going to try to turn me back now.” His tone made it a statement rather than a question, but Julian nodded anyway.

 

“Before you do, there's something I should tell you.”

 

“What is it, Garak?” Julian asked, his full attention on the the dragon.

 

“Dragons don't feel things the same way humans do, we don't have the same capacity. One of the quirks of immortal beings. We don't regret, and we don't love...at least not in the same way you do.” Garak sighed and glanced Julian before continuing, “A dragon's love is covetous and possessive. We gather our treasures and guard them forever. Dragons don't understand your concept of letting go of the ones you love. We aren't capable of such generosity. We may sacrifice ourselves for what we love, but letting it leave our power is outside of a dragon's nature.”

 

Julian remained silent as Garak's eyes sought out his own and the dragon's gray hand clutched at his.

 

“You are the most valuable treasure I have, my dear magician.” Garak took a deep breath to steady himself. “But if you want leave after this...I have spent enough time in this human form that I now feel your selfless form of love.” Julian blinked in surprise.

 

“You're letting me go?” he asked. Garak only nodded in response. The magician's face drew closed in thought, then, finally he bent down and pressed a gentle kiss to Garak's lips.

 

“You couldn't chase me off after you rescued me from that kraken and you won't chase me off now. You're stuck with me until I die, which considering my curse, will likely be a very long time.” He grinned softly down at the dragon, who offered a smile of his own in response.

 

“Now, I really need to concentrate if I'm going to get you back to your proper form,” Julian chided lightly. Garak gave half a smirk and released his hand.

 

Julian began to focus, drawing upon the magic within him and bending it towards restoring the dragon's shape. Words of power slipped from his mouth, but he couldn't hear them, lost as he was in channeling the magic and forcing it to do his bidding. When he finally came back to himself he collapsed forward onto the bed, finally letting himself feel the exhaustion he'd pushed back while tending to Garak.

 

The dragon in question brought his head down to tenderly nuzzle the human. His voice rumbled softly out, “My dear magician, I will keep you and your memory with me when civilization is dust. I will know your eyes when humans are gone. I will remember your kindness when the world is just a whisper on the wind. There is no immortality like a dragon's love.”

 

**Author's Note:**

> Since I gave Julian Schmendrick's role, I included a reference to how Schmendrick's mentor made him immortal to give him time to master his magic.
> 
> Fun trivia: Odo's actor also voiced the talking skull in The Last Unicorn film.


End file.
